This world
by Miyu01
Summary: Itachi is living a dream or maybe it is reality. Yet he has to meet his past to erase all the nightmares. After that would it be really over or would that mean only the beginning of something worse? From the moment when their eyes met for the last time.AU


In my memories she was always beautiful. Like a dancing angel, fighting with everyone. I could see it as clearly as it was just yesterday. But so much time passed down, so much of pain and losses. Sometimes I could see her in my dream, the moment when our eyes met for the last time. The moment, that had changed her life or maybe… mine too.

I woke up again in this world where something was wrong. Something I could feel, but wasn't able to tell.

I closed the door at my flat and continued down a narrow street toward the training ground, which was located in the far-flung part of the town. The sun was shining brightly and it seemed like peace reigned everywhere. Why everyone looked like nothing is going on? Didn't they feel it? This world where you couldn't be happy because it wasn't meant for you?

„Hey, wait!" I hear this annoying voice once again. I turned without even trying to look surprised. It was Ino. She was able to meet me "by accident" almost every day. She was just talking too much. I wasn't even pretending to listen. She never realized or she just pretended not to. She was living in her small world, where she was the most important person. I could remember clearly how she ran after my brother.

Yes, my amazing brother. The prodigy of our clan, the bright example of how should the career of an Uchiha member look like. Even now I hate his damn self confident smile before my eyes and a stare that was telling he was something more. The face of a person who knew, he belongs to the best, to the elite. To the famous team 7.

"Itachi?" the sound of my name threw me out from my thoughts. I didn't realize when we have stopped. She was looking at me a little bit scrutinizingly, like she suspected I was totally out.

"Hokage wants to see you as soon as possible." She added after a while and slowly walked away.

I passed the village streets and in my mind I saw myself as a young boy running through them. I wasn't alone and that was the strange thing. It scared me. The other figure was similar to me, but its face was hidden in a shadow. These were only snatches, the only moments of happiness and I couldn't remember them. It is my fate to live in this damn reality forever? In the world where I was only a shadow of my brother? On a place, where I was only: "The younger brother of Sasuke Uchiha"?

The team 7. Amazing and unique. Each member was an example for every jounin. My invincible brother. So self-conscious, that it made me want to scream out loud every time I saw him. Our similarity became my personal curse. I hated his dark blue eyes and as soon as I could use my sharingans, my eyes were always red. They seemed odd and most of the people felt nervously because of them. That was only a pleasant bonus.

I watched Sasuke`s team by the training every time it was possible for me. I admired the way how they fought. My brother, who was supposed to be an example for me. Kyuubi – a human with the demon`s soul, who gained respect and esteem. And the last one – she.

I knocked on the office door. I heard yammer, a silent cursing and after a little while a shrill: "Come."

Calmly I opened the door and walked inside the room, which was calling after a try to hide something. Tsunade was sitting behind the table, paper in hands – the picture of an intensive working person.

But her glass eyes were telling the truth about what really happened before. With a corner of my eye I noticed an empty bottle of sake. Its part was covered by the sheets, but my sharingans couldn't miss it. Tsunade noticed it together with me. In a moment she looked from the bottle at me. My face was calm. I couldn't tell that I agreed with it. Alcohol was only a demonstration of weakness. But I could understand her in some way. Everyone had to come to terms with it in his own way.

Tsunade cough to hide her uneasiness and indicated that I should sit down. I watched her as she browsed through a pile of paper sheet and was mumbled something to herself. In the end she supposedly found what she was looking for. She looked at the paper in her hand once again as she was making sure about what was written inside.

„They found Sakura." She said suddenly.

I jerked and I was afraid that she saw that. But Tsunade was still reading the paper very curiously and from time to time looking around the other papers. Not that she was looking for something, I thought she was trying to hide her disquiet and worries better that anything else. Something is happening. Unwitting I looked at the pictures that were placed on a small cabinet. My brother, Kyuubi and the last one…

"_Who are you waiting for?" I heard a voice behind my back. It surprised me. I didn't feel that someone got near me. And I was so proud of my abilities. Even if I was only a boy who came to watch his older brother on the first day of his genin`s duty. I slowly turned around. There was a girl above me. She looked like she was in the same age as Sasuke. She was smiling and moving away a wisp from her face. Her hair was pink and unnatural. It was fixed by the Leaf head protector. "Genin!" was the first thought that came across my mind._

But suddenly she stood still, just looking at me. "You are Sasuke`s little brother, Am I right? Your resemblance is really unbelievable."

_That wasn't the thing I have been waiting to hear. But I was fascinated by her. In a moment she said goodbye and I watched her as she ran to her team. I couldn't take my eyes from her, she was like goddess. I admired the style of her fighting. Every little thing on her made me amazed. I could watch her for hours. And slowly, somewhere deep inside me, desire was born. Desire, which put in the shade my childish rivalry towards my older brother. Desire, that she would look at me like she was looking at my brother. So it would be only me in her mind. Me and only me. Without exception. _

She was smiling on the picture. She was looking at my brother so it was easy to tell why she was so happy. I took the picture into my hand. I touched the glass with my fingertips. Maybe I was hoping I would touch the real person and not the empty picture. After a while I carefully put it back on the cabinet and looked back to Tsunade.

"It is a S-class mission, but I know you will make it. You have to!" She put the papers on the table. "This mission has to succeed, it is important" she added an emphasis on the last words as she gave me the scroll with details. I nodded. Like if it was necessary to say something like this.

I stood up from the chair walked to the door. "I want her to come back alive… please" a small voice echoed in my ears, just before the door have closed behind me.

I rested against the closed door feeling the pain in my eyes, again. I took my head in my hands and I could hear the scroll fall on the floor. That sound filed up the whole corridor and my mind. Everything was dark and everywhere was blood, streams of blood. I could hear the screams from everywhere and the moon lighted up the person who was responsible for all of this.

_I wanted to forget so much so maybe it worked too well. I__ could see parts of my childhood which never happened, I could see people without face. But the worst moments would always return when I could not defend myself._

_The__y used to return in my dreams. During the nights when I was unable to sleep, when I was waking up from nightmares which were so real, that I could feel their presence even hours after I was awake. I felt sticky blood on my hands and a face, absolute silent, which underlined the fact, that there was no one who would scream or call for help anymore. I saw myself standing there, unable to move. I couldn't do anything, just perceiving the fallen silent. _

_And although I__ thought that she was beautiful. I just stood there, without moving and I admired her like all the years before. _

I started to move faster. Firstly I wanted to go home as soon as possible and after that go outside of the village. Secondly I hoped it would help me to get rid of unpleasant memories. I almost kicked out the door as I was trying to open them. I threw-opened the scroll on the bed and started to pack the most important things.

The ANBU squad had met Sakura close to the Suna`s borders. Their mission was to follow her in a secure distance and wait for the reinforcement to come. That reinforcement meant to be me. I have been thinking if it was because of my abilities, or because of my resemblance to Sasuke.

Before I had left I visited the memorial stone of dead heroes. I lit up a candle and said a short pray. Not for those whose names have been carved on it. Names I have known. From stories, legends and my own childhood. People I should admire. But all my worship belong only one person. My goddess and my pray belonged to her too, although her name was missing.

It was cold and my warm breath was condensing under my ANBU mask. The mist was everywhere around, the forest was somber and silent. I was jumping from one tree to another watching arrows of light, which were struggling they way through the trees and illuminating the white mist around. When I will meet her again, will it bring the end to this feeling of emptiness? For all these years I was hoping so. I was praying, swearing and beseeching everything alive and dead around for it to stop. For the end of the nights, when I was waking up from my sleep and days I had the feeling, that everything is just a dream.

I can't remember how it began. Maybe it was when I have saw for the first time or maybe the last time? The moment, where I have lost every one of my emotions, feelings and dreams. Before her, there was only the rivalry and my endeavor to prove that I am me. I hated my brother, my family, my miserable existence. I wanted to prove that I was different – better, worse, simply, that I was not him. I wanted and needed it so desperately, that the life alone wasn't important for me anymore. And after that I met her.

When I close my eyes, I still can see her. Her green eyes full of joy when she smiled at me from time to time. Her pink hair in the wind and her hopeless tries to do something with them. Her entire being was perfect. And I was just a child who has yearned for something, that wasn't its.

The desire was stronger than any other feelings, stronger than impassivity and primary coldness of my heart. I wanted her to look at me just once. Just once without her seeing Sasuke in me, who wasn't able or didn't want to give her what she yearned for.

I leaned against a tree and drank some water. I was close to the place where the ANBU squad saw Sakura. It was very likely that they have moved. I had no idea how much further they could be with one day start. I closed the bottle and put the ANBU mask on my face. I started to move.

As I thought, nor Sakura or the ANBU squad was on the place anymore. According to the evident signs they have left I could easily determine the direction they moved into. Maybe it was too easy.

After few hours I could sense several chakras. I was close. But the closer I was the less chakras I could feel. I knew what that meant and I could only hope I will arrive in time. Right before I have reached them all the life disappeared. Except one.

I reached a meadow inside the forest. There were dead bodies all around. I recognized the squad which has found Sakura. The others have belonged to ninjas from the Sound village. Probably they met Sakura by accident. How foolish to think that they could take an advantage of meeting a lonely leaf ninja. They had no chance and they took down our ANBU squad too.

And in the middle of it – my goddess. She looked exactly how I have remembered her. The same disobedient hair and the head protector, which reminded who she used to be. And the same red colored blood which covered her body. But this time there was no moonlight and there were no tears on her face. Her eyes were empty. She reached out her hand towards me and I went.

_No one __could tell what exactly happened 3 years ago. No one could understand. Team 7 was our best ANBU squad and their mission wasn't even supposed to be hard nor dangerous. Everything was covered in mystery and only one person knew the truth._

_Maybe they had to deal wit too many enemy ninjas or maybe it was because of the fight between Sasuke and the Kyuubi. The reason didn't matter now. There were two new names on the memorial stone – Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto. The third one was missing. The last witness of the whole bloodbath. The one, who had killed every witness of this happening. Sakura. _

_And only after that we __had learnt about the things, which were so well hidden. Schizophrenia. No one knew about her second self,, not even her closest people. Her second self that was keeping inside her anger, wrath and negative emotions. The death of her closest ones ruined her world and enabled her inner self to come out. She has lost the signification of who was friend and who was a foe. She killed without thinking till there was one who could tell what really happened that night. It was too late when we arrived._

I saw again the picture I couldn't erase from my memory. She stood in the middle and the moon illuminated her figure like it was laughing at us. She looked so petite and vulnerable. And I couldn't do anything else but to think how beautiful she was And about the red blood slowly dropping from her katana she was holding in her hands. The perfect angel of death. She turned to me and I could finally see her face. Our eyes met and that was the last time I saw her. She has disappeared and no one knew where. I was waiting patiently and I was sure we would meet again. And I would bring to an end this never ending dream. And the moment has arrived now. 

Sakura reached her hand towards me and I went. I was waiting for this moment and was prepared. She just had to look into my eyes. I put down my ANBU mask and let it fell to the ground.

"Sasuke…?" she said and gently caressed my face. She saw what she wanted to see and I only made it easier for her.

It was my fate, her fate. We knew it from the moment I saw her killing. From the moment our eyes met and I could see them clearly, the beautiful emerald eyes…. full of tears.

I knew as wll I would be the one who would set her free from this pain, from the knowing of what she did. It was the last thing I could do. I used my sharingans to give her the freedom she longed so much for. The illusion of a happy family, of moments she has spent with those she loved. Memories, that weren't conquered by the darkness.

I took her into my arms, to feel her for the first and for the last time, just before I pushed the kunai into her body. The last thing I could do. She looked at me and I knew she saw only me and no one else.

The blood slowly soaked my clothes and I held her as tight as I could. She has died happy and her thoughts were dedicated only to me. To me and to no one else. Now and forever.

-fin-


End file.
